


Because It Matters

by thelittlethings



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Absent Parents, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, F/M, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Headcanon, M/M, Minor Character Death, Pack Feels, Sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-20
Updated: 2013-03-20
Packaged: 2017-12-05 21:09:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,098
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/727961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thelittlethings/pseuds/thelittlethings
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Scott meets his father, the whole Pack is with him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Because It Matters

When Scott meets his father, the whole Pack is with him.

They hang around the edges, trying to give him his space. There's not much they can do for him in terms of support, anyway, and it's enough for Scott that they're  _there_ , that they decided to stick by him and support him in a way that his father didn't. This couldn't have been easy for them, for any of them. 

Stiles and the Sheriff, who lost a wife and a mother not long after Scott's father left. Scott still sees the grief in Stiles' eyes, knows that he aches, each and every day, in a way Scott's never had to experience. Even Allison, who lost her mother because of what he is, is there with him, and his throat closes when he thinks of what that must mean, of how much she cares for him despite all that she's ever known, despite what she's _lost_. Jackson and Lydia, who both lost their parents along the way, though they're very much alive. Jackson's dressed in his best suit, Lydia dressed to perfection, but he can tell by the way Lydia clutches onto Jackson's arm and the way Jackson lets her that they understand. Isaac... Scott doesn't even want to think about how terrible this must be for Isaac, who still has yet to mourn the father he'd always known and loved in spite of the abuse, in spite of the freezer. No, this is nothing compared to that. 

And then there's Derek. Derek, who lives in a burned out shell of a home haunted by the ghosts of his past, is there. For him. At first, Scott wouldn't let Derek out of his sight, but now... he trusts him with his life. As much as he knows Derek, he wasn't sure he'd come. He isn't sure he would, if he were him. Derek's standing next to his mother protectively, talking to her quietly. Scott knows this is the hardest thing his mother's ever done. Melissa McCall never imagined she'd see her husband again, and yet she's there, after having raised Scott on her own with no help, no husband, and no goodbye. The pain in her heart runs deep, but Scott's always,  _always_ meant more to her than her grief. 

Scott wants to chicken out, wants to walk away and never face it. He knows he's not okay with that, but he's not okay with  _this_ , either, but he owes them that. 

Taking a deep breath, Scott turns and walks toward his father, taking in the harsh lines of his face, but the eyes, his eyes, are what really gets him. 

This is his  _father_. This is the man he waited for at all his lacrosse games, school assemblies, and parent-teacher meetings. This is the man who should have taught him sports and cars and even given him the stupidly embarrassing Talk. He should have been there for all of that, and wasn't. 

 _Damn it_ , he thinks.  _Just say it. Say what you came here for._  

And he does. 

"Was it easy for you to walk away like that?" Scott whispers to an empty room. "Did I make it that easy? Because you used to be here. You used to make me breakfast and throw me in the air, and then you  _left_. You packed up one day and you  _left!_ " Scott sniffles, shaking his head. "I caught you while you were going out the front door. You told me, 'Scotty, go back to bed, okay? I'm juust going to get some chocolate chips for your favorite pancakes. I'll be right back.' And you never did." 

Scott tries to fight the tears, but they're welling at the corners of his eyes and he can't stop them, just like he couldn't stop his father from leaving or his mom from crying once he did. 

"I never told Mom, you know that? Not even when I realized what really happened," he continues, his voice choked. "I let her tell me you were a good man. And sometimes, I made myself believe it too," he cries, staring at the picture above the casket. 

"I hated myself, because I never stopped hoping you would come back." 

Scott wipes a few stray tears away. 

"At least I get to say it, this time." 

There's nothing but silence. Scott can't even sense anyone breathing in the next room. 

"Goodbye," he cries, sniffling and wiping his arm on his sleeve. "Dad," he adds hesitantly. 

There's a gentle touch on his arm, and his mother is there, looking at him with tears in her eyes and shaking her head before pulling his head to her shoulder, running a comforting hand down the back of his neck. She holds him until he stops crying, and she doesn't say a word. Doesn't tell him that everything's going to be okay, doesn't tell him that he's better off without him. Just stays. 

And that's all Scott's ever wanted: someone who would stay. 

Scott thinks about that as he's approached by his friends and family. 

Stiles is first, pulling him into a bro hug he didn't know he needed until his face was crushed in Stiles' shoulder. Allison approaches with a sad smile, hugging him and kissing his cheek wordlessly. Lydia nudges Jackson into moving, and Scott's taken aback when Jackson full out hugs him. "This never happened," Jackson whispers, and Scott smiles. From Jackson, that's practically love. Lydia takes Scott's hand in hers, whispering a quiet blessing, and Scott almost swears he can feel her magic. 

Derek looks to Isaac for approval before wrapping Scott in a hug, his Alpha scent calming Scott almost as much as a drug. "Thanks for coming," Scott says, and Derek shakes his head. 

"You're Pack, Scott," Derek comforts him. "We're brothers." 

Scott smiles at that, wiping the tears away. 

When Isaac pulls him into his arms, he whispers, "Are you okay?" 

Scott closes his eyes and drinks in Isaac's scent. He smells like home. "I will be," he promises. 

As they file out, Scott looks at them. Derek and Stiles are latched together, tight. Melissa has her head on the Sheriff's shoulder, her arm looped through his. Jackson and Lydia look nearly the same, with the exception of Jackson pressing a kiss to Lydia's forehead. Isaac is still holding Scott in his arms as Allison gives him a small wave, Chris nodding his head from the car. 

He wanted people who would stay. 

Maybe, he thinks, he doesn't need his father. 

He already has all the family - all the Pack - he'll ever need. 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading this. I realize it's pretty sad, but this has literally been bothering me for weeks and I had to write it. Title is based off of the John Green quote, “Maybe there's something you're afraid to say, or someone you're afraid to love, or somewhere you're afraid to go. It's gonna hurt. It's gonna hurt because it matters.”


End file.
